It's arguably one of the biggest weeks for food news in Texas in a decade. Michelin announced it's first-ever list of best restaurants in Texas.
More than 100 restaurants were honored on Monday night in the very first Michelin Texas Guide announcement. 28 restaurants in Dallas-Fort Worth were part of that list.
There are several categories, but the most important is Michelin's Michelin-starred restaurants. Texas saw zero two or three-star restaurants. And just one one-star restaurant came from Dallas: That's Tatsu in Deep Ellum.
Of course, I want to see Michelin say that our restaurants in Texas are world-class, but a Michelin two or three-star restaurant is something I haven't seen in this state yet. These are often tasting-menu restaurants, many are very expensive.
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For example, there's a restaurant in Copenhagen called Alchemist. It's a two-star Michelin restaurant -- diners get up to 50 courses and stay for seven hours or more. This is just not the style of dining we have in Texas, but that could change.
Four barbecue restaurants in Texas received a one-star Michelin restaurant rating. Michelin has never honored barbecue joints like that before. I love to see it. Now the surprise comes in the selection of which ones. In North Texas, Goldee's Barbecue, Panther City, Cattleack, and Smoke'N Ash got Michelin recognition, but they didn't get a star. I wished some of them would have.
There's some disappointment from chefs and restaurant critics about the lack of recognition for Tex-Mex. Some high-end Mexican restaurants were named statewide, but I think they missed a big one by not choosing Don Artemio in Fort Worth, a contemporary Mexican restaurant that I think is really special.
The Scene
Birrieria y Taqueria Cortez, a taco shop in Fort Worth, was put on Michelin's Recommended list. (Recommended means they like the restaurant but it isn't high enough caliber to get a Michelin star.) My colleague Imelda Garcia looked into this restaurant, and it started in the owners' home in 2019, where they made and sold menudo. It's now a full restaurant. Pretty cool and worth the trip.
The Michelin Texas Guide is full of good food and, often, these businesses are family-owned, and I find that special. Some of them are expensive, but not all. I'd encourage anyone interested to go to DallasNews.com/Michelin, where we analyze every bit of this list. There's extreme diversity in cuisine, geography, and price point, and I think there's a Michelin-rated restaurant worth visiting for everyone.
